(the image above shows Mada'in Saleh, one of the archaeological remains in Saudi Arabia. The remains of this city, carved into sandstone, are considered the second most important after Petra’s Nabataean culture)

Saudi Aramco

Saudi Aramco is the world leader in the production of petroleum- based energy. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco has offices and operations throughout the Kingdom.Their subsidiaries also have offices in North America, Europe and Asia. Aramco's subsidiaries and affiliates are located in Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, India, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Partner for the '400 Years of Arabic in Leiden' program

Saudi Aramco value the communities it operates in and is committed to being a good corporate citizen by supporting high impact initiatives that address critical issues facing our society. Saudi Aramco is dedicated to making a difference wherever they do business by creating educational opportunities, collaborating in health care research and initiating energy sustainability programs. In the recent past Saudi Aramco provided funds to improve a pediatrics division of a Milanese hospital, it hosts the Model United Nations in The Hague and offers fellowships for academic research at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

Saudi Aramco’s sponsorship for some of the wonderful activities within the ‘400 year of Arabic in Leiden’ cultural program demonstrates their commitment in raising cultural awareness and mutual understanding. A commitment shared by Leiden University, Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde, Leiden University Libraries and others working on the '400 years of Arabic in Leiden' program.

Events

Saudi Aramco's generous support helps us to bring you the following events:

Sept. '13 - March '14

Excellence and Dignity- 400 Years of Arabic Studies in the Netherlands Exhibition Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden

This exhibition on 400 years of Arabic studies in the Netherlands is organized in cooperation with Leiden University Libraries and the Academisch Historisch Museum, Leiden. It sketches the history of a scholarly tradition at the hand of the portraits of mainly Leiden professors of Arabic and their legacy. Many rare books, prints and manuscripts will be on view. In May 2013 it was 400 years ago that the first professor of Arabic at Leiden, Thomas Erpenius (1584–1624), gave his inaugural speech on the ‘Excellence and Dignity of the Arabic Language’. Arabic studies at Leiden are a deeply rooted tradition that enjoys worldwide fame with scholars such as Scaliger, Erpenius, Golius, De Goeje and Snouck Hurgronje. Behind the Leiden professors and the university there was a full fledged local infrastructure of Oriental printers such as Elzevier and Brill, booksellers and auctioneers. Arabic studies at Leiden aptly symbolize the view of the ‘other’ over the centuries, and they testify to the cosmopolitan curiosity of scholars in search of the exotic world of Islam.

Sept. '13 - March '14

Longing for Mecca - the journey of the pilgrimExhibition Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde, Leiden

'Longing for Mecca – the journey of the pilgrim' is the first extensive exhibition devoted to the subject of Hajj in the Netherlands. For a quarter of the world’s population, Mecca is the place you must have been once in the course of your life. Believers from all over the world head off to the holy city to pray every day, and millions set off each year on the true pilgrimage to Mecca. For many hundreds of years, this has been a spiritual ideal. Mecca, a city that is only open to Muslim believers, has grown into a mysterious phenomenon. Today there are close to one million Muslims living in the Netherlands, for whom the pilgrimage to Mecca is a very important ritual within their religion. The Netherlands is a culturally diverse society in which Islam is taking a prominent role in the lives of many. Therefore Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde aims to provide a polyphone image on Hajj and Islam to create understanding and respect. We want our visitors (Muslim and Non-Muslim) to experience the exhibition as an impressive personal journey, both spiritually and religiously, in order to provide them with an accurate and image of the meaning of this tradition.

21 September '13

Farida and The Iraqi Maqam Ensembleconcert

Leiden University and Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde are proud and honoured to present a concert by the legendary Farida and The Iraqi Maqam Ensemble on Saturday 21 September at 15.00 hrs."The Iraqi singer Farida Mohammad Ali [...] is one of only a handful of artists to have mastered the ancient musical discipline of maqam – a lifetime's pursuit, as the singer must develop not only a command of complex melodies and scales but also the scripture and philosophy behind them..."

19/20 October '13

Arabic Culture Weekendmusic, tales from '1001 Nights', workshops and more

Leiden University and Rijksmuseum Volkenkunde invite you to a weekend of Arab language and culture.Sit yourself down on a comfortable cushion in our Arabic tent, have some tea and a snack and listen to Arabic music, a tale from '1001 Nights or the ins and outs of Middle Eastern hiphop.You can also participate in speed courses of Arabic by Leiden University students, get a henna tattooing and do or learn much, much more.

1 November '13

Arabic wall poem

Leiden University will unveil a new, Arabic (of course) wall poem in the historical centre of Leiden.Stichting Tegenbeeld is currently preparing a Leiden wall for painting this wonderful addition to an already great oeuvre of wall poems.

14 December '13

Salon Joussourconcert

Salon Joussour introduces Arabic music to a culturally interested audience of all backgrounds, as well as musicians and artists in the Netherlands. Through a short lecture led by a master musician from the Arab world, followed by a concert, we aim to unlock the essence of the Arab art. Salon Joussour also aims to craft a bridge bonding Western and Arabic music by connecting renowned Dutch musicians (e.g. Tony Overwater and Rembrand Friedrichs) with Arab guests in a musical collaboration.

This concert is organised by Leiden University and Rijksmuseum van Oudheden and will take place in the museum's central hall, in front of the beautiful Temple of Taffeh.

28 March '14 - 28 Sept '14

Golden Ages in Arabia and HollandTour Museum Boerhaave, Leiden

To celebrate ‘400 years of Arabic in Leiden’, Museum Boerhaave (the Dutch National Museum for the History of Science and Medicine) designed the temporary museum tour 'Golden Ages of Arabia and Holland' along selected objects that testify the (often unfamiliar) Islamic origin of well known scientific and medical inventions that we hold as the products of Western ingenuity.The tour comes with a commemorative booklet providing concise explanations on the objects and other related facts.